Halo: Ghosts of Jupiter
by M. SKILLZ Hector
Summary: In the days of the 2nd Rebellion, a science station orbiting Jupiter awakens an ancient horror that could cause the end of all galactic life. Now, eight of the UNSC's best soldiers are all that stands between this ancient threat, and the heart of mankind
1. Chapter 1

Feet first into hell.

Prologue: Ghosts of Jupiter.

April 16th 2511 military calendar. 0700 hours

_UNSC Gagetown_ monitoring station: Jupiter Post.

_This is so god damn boring!_ The exhausted and stubble faced monitoring tech thought to himself before taking another slug of the most stale bitter, and worst excuse for a cup of coffee he had ever tasted. _Even if there is intelligent life out there, I doubt I will see it during my lifetime._ He had been working the graveyard shift for over three months now, operating the sophisticated yet useless monitoring equipment on the control deck of the _Gagetown:_ an orbital monitoring and listening post circling around the planet Jupiter. The poor soul working the monitoring gear was 2nd Lieutenant Gordon Lynch. He was young for his rank at the age of twenty three, and received his posting due to a drunken fiasco in a bar outside of Fort Worth. Gordon wanted to join the Marines latest developmental detachment called the ODSTs or Orbital Deployed Shock Troop, but after a disciplinary hearing he was transferred to the Jupiter post. While the brunt of the UNSC's military was fighting insurgents in the Eriandus region, he was collecting dust at a puny listening post monitoring dust and echoes throughout the stations range. This was unfortunately an active range of 1.5 light years. He had a lot to sift through.

The Gagetown was designed as part of an early warning network for incoming meteors on potential earthbound vectors, and also an extension of an controversial project from the mid 1990's called SETI. Lieutenant Lynch was spending his days listening for comets and aliens. Moreover, in the history of the UNSC neither had ever been detected.

The station had a compliment of twelve crewmembers: eight station techs, and four marines. The station was three times larger than Russia's classic space-jalopy _Mir_, and had ten times the technical issues. On a daily basis several of the stations systems, and sub-routines would fail, or fluctuate. The on-board engineers blamed it on electromagnetic interference from the gas giant, but Lynch blamed it on the UNSC's tight budgets for small ops like this one. Hell, even the coffee was a result of that tight budget.

Aside from the more monotone features of the Gagetown there were some perks. The station was equipped with a powerful magnetic-accelerated-cannon, or MAC Gun. As well as being a monitoring post, the Gagetown also served as an orbital defense platform. The station was in disrepair and a floating hunk of space-junk, but at least she had some teeth in her jaws.

Despite the caffeine coursing through his blood, the young and very exhausted Lieutenant was beginning to nod off. Cursing the joint chiefs, he began to drift off but was rudely snapped out of his near slumber by a shrill alarm on the console in front of him.

"What the hell is that?" Said lynch as he leaned over the panel and ran a quick systems check. "It's _probably just another failure in the tertiary solar wing."_

But Lynch couldn't have been more wrong. The stations internal systems were nominal. He rubbed his eyes and began to bring up the planetary sensors, which showed him the most bizarre thing he had witnessed during his entire posting on the Gagetown. There on his display was massive white blotch which indicated an energy source. Lynch shook his head and stared in complete awe at the sensor readout. The energy source was emanating from _within_ Jupiter. "Ciara, what is that?"

The luminescent AI pedestal beside his chair came to life in the form of an emerald glowing woman with a slender build. Her entire body was made of a holographic projection containing streaming numerical code. She resembled a sleek woman wearing flowing robes made of purple code. She blinked her artificial eyes and tilted her head in thought "Unknown. It appears to be a rather large power source. I am sending a pair of probes into the gas giant for a full analysis." She said, as her color shimmered and changed to violet as she processed her task. "Negative, Ciara." Said Lynch "Let's open the view port. The sensors are saying its right below the station's orbit." He said.

Ciara was the shipboard AI. She was an intricately designed synthetic construct capable of a multitude of tasks. The AI was the entire mainframe of the stations systems rolled into a single conscious entity. "Yes Lieutenant." She responded.

Red-amber light began to pour into the bridge as a massive rectangular window blind began to retract. The amber glow filled the bridge like a flood of molten gold. Lynch covered his eyes as the windows light filter dulled out the glare. As his eyes readjusted Lynch gasped and took several steps back slumping into the command chair. Without taking his eyes away he cleared his throat and addressed Ciara. "Call the god damned crew."

It took a moment for Ciara to divert her attention from the view screen and carry out her orders. "Yes Lieutenant." She said as a shrill alarm filled the station.

Lynch stared at the view port with his mouth agape. Within the gas giant there was a massive rectangular object. It completely dwarfed the station in size, and was covered in small multi colored lights.

Lynch forced himself to look away and regarded Ciara thoughtfully. "Ok, send out a few probes. But let's keep a safe distance from it." He said, shakily.

"Processing. Probes launched. Estimated time to effective range in fifteen seconds.

Lynch nodded. "Let me know when you have a visual of the object. Any theories?"

The AI put her hand on her chin thoughtfully. "Well, it's too localized to be an electromagnetic storm. Judging by it's output I'd say it's a synthetic power source." She said. "I think it's a ship of some kind."

"Synthetic? You mean a ship? That's impossible Ciara. The UNSC does not have any operations within Jupiter that I am aware of. And I'd be the first to know." He replied as he took another sip of the wretched coffee.

Suddenly the command deck doors hissed open and eight groggy crew members entered rubbing their eyes. "This had better not be another fuckin drill. I'm sick and tired……" The crew member shut his mouth and just stared in unison with his colleagues at the view port.

"The hell is that thing?" Asked a crewmember. She sat down at the telemetry station and tied her tangled brunette hair into a ponytail.

Ciara reappeared on the pedestal. She closed her eyes for a moment in thought as she processed several data routines. "The probes are in place. I have a visual of the object."

"Show me." Said Lynch as he stood up and turned to examine a large monitor.

The large screen came to life and revealed something _odd._ It was some sort of long rectangular object suspended within the gaseous body of Jupiter. Rectangular wouldn't best describe it though. It definitely resembled a ship of some kind but it had several tower like protrusions, and relay dishes. The surface material appeared to be metallic and was extremely shiny. "Ciara, magnify the image, I want to get a better look at what this thing is made of. And while you're at it get me in touch with ONI. They're going to be interested in this." Said Lynch as he stood up and approached the view screen.

As the screen changed to show a close-up of the objects surface he noticed several strange symbols on its outer hull. "I have a telemetry report on the object Lieutenant. The object is approximately 3000 kilometers in length and 800 kilometers wide. It is definitely a vessel or some sort of station, but the technology is not registered in any known UNSC files. This object is not of human origin. I would further theorize that the …Lieutenant I'm receiving some sort of transmission coming from the object." Said Ciara.

"Let's hear it." He responded.

The control deck was suddenly filled with a high pitched squeal that made the crew's ears burn. "Cut it off!" He yelled over the shrill blood curdling noise. Ciara was quick to comply. She was about to offer her analysis of the transmission when suddenly the Gagetown shook violently as though some invisible hand had grabbed it and shaken the station like a baby's rattle.

Lynch was violently thrown to the deck like a rag doll. He stood up confused and tried to look around but his vision was clouded with blood. "Report!" He cried out.

"The object just hit us with some sort of focused energy weapon. All sub systems and communications have been nullified. I recommend abandoning the station before we are attacked again.

Negative. It's hostile, whatever it is. Prep the MAC. We're going to take a chunk of this _thing_." He said as he tapped several buttons on his console.

Ciara didn't verbally respond and instead, quickly began prepping the firing controls. The Gagetown's deck vibrated with a soft hum. "MAC gun is prepped sir."

"Fire at will." He said as he gripped the armrests of his chair until his knuckles turned bleach white.

BOOM! The deck plating rattled as a round shot out towards the object. It struck the dorsal section of the object and bounced off like a bullet ricocheting from a granite wall. It did however tear off a rather large section of antennas and other unidentified protrusions.

The object responded with a second strike of focused energy which sheared away the Gagetown's secondary solar wing. The station trembled from the hit, and new alarms blared throughout the installation.

"We've lost the number two s-wing. We can't take another hit like that…" The engineering officer said in a trembling tone.

Ciara examined her telemetry reports. She focused on a bulbous, dome like section toward the aft of the object. "Sir! I've found a weak spot." She said.

"Exploit it." He didn't even have to wait for her response. The deck rattled again as their second round hungrily shot towards it's target. The shell pierced the dome perfectly. The resulting breach of the object's hull sent it spinning out of control. A massive cloud of oxygen sprayed out of it like a fresh puncture wound gushing blood.

"Critical hit! The object is out of control inside the gas giant." Said Ciara.

Second Lieutenant Lynch was about to respond to the AI's recommendation when something on the view screen captured his attention. An intense glowing light was building up on the nose of the object. "_Oh shit."_ He thought as the light morphed into a long beam of purple hued energy streaking outward toward the station at an alarming rate. "Lieutenant: brace yourself!" Cried the AI. However, her warning was in vain. In a matter of seconds, the beam struck the Gagetown followed by a blinding explosion reminiscent of a nuclear flash.

The crew members rushing to repair damages to the bridge never knew what hit them. The energy collected around the station, which in turn imploded on itself. The power within the beam intensified and detonated the Gagetown into a massive shockwave of molten hull plating turned into space born shrapnel.

What remained of the UNSC orbital station floated in a long streaming trail of debris strewn all about Jupiter's orbit. Immediately following the violent explosion the energy beam trailed back to its source at the nose of the object. The lights dotting its surface flashed a bright shade of red, then a deep blue before flickering into darkness as the object powered down and vanished into Jupiter's atmosphere.

Simultaneously as the Gagetown detonated, in the course a nanosecond Ciara executed her counter measures. She subconsciously downloaded herself into a sub-space file transfer. In a state of existence only a shipboard AI could understand the following took place:

Begin/counter-measure-Ciara-Backup Alpha-1…done

A.I.-compression-done…Shipboard AI intact.

Begin emergency-transmit/REACH….ONI Section3…. Begin-Send/Priorityone

All crew dead. Station compromised.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 1: War Games

April 19th 2511 military calendar 08 00 hrs

_ONI Training Facility._ Planet Reach.

UNSC Marine Lieutenant Shaun M Gallagher tensed against the polynylon restraints which bound him to the inside of the metallic pod, which his squad mates affectionately nicknamed: the bullet-coffin. The pod was called an HEV or _Human Entry Vehicle. _It was made from several folds of heat and impact resistant steels, and was the latest in UNSC tactical technology. The HEV's were a quick deployment method designed to carry a single soldier with complete field kit and weapons to the surface of a target planet, from an orbiting ship. The pod itself; contained a vertically positioned harness for the soldier, with several equipment racks for weapons and gear. There was an LCD screen which displayed tactical information, as well as communications equipment, and a control console so that the soldier could manually control his descent speed, and trajectory in case of a guidance malfunction.

The developers who designed the HEV concept had originally recommended incorporating a shipboard AI program to coordinate the drop sequence, due to the potential of human error. However, the ever expensive Eriandus conflict caused tight budgets, which forced the designers to incorporate human controlled adjustment systems. It was part of the UNSC's goal to outfit the entire fleet with units of elite special ops troops who could be quickly deployed on enemy territories as a method of overwhelming, and extinguishing their targets resources, and organization in order to pave the way for a full assault. The name of this operation was the ODST project. The Orbital Drop Shock Troops were currently preparing for their _third_ live jump. This time they had a mission objective.

In a makeshift garrison just west of the Big Horn River, a division of marines were protecting a mock relay station. All personnel were armed with stun ammunition, and had standing orders to use whatever means necessary to repel an attack. The ODSTs had to deliver a TAC nuke to the target and demolish it. The simulation's objective was to determine if it would be possible to use ODSTs to disable a planet's orbital defenses from the surface.

To the Hell-jumpers this mission was a cakewalk. Hit the dirt, own the jarheads, and blow the relay station. Simple enough, but in the past two drops they had lost four troops. They had either been disintegrated on entry, or were killed due to equipment failure. The platoon had been instructed that s_hould an incident occur the mission would not be pulled_. They were to _compensate for any losses, and complete their objective._ Their carrier ship: The UNSC _Winston Churchill_ would also be sending a flight of Pelican drop-ships to provide recon and supplies. The birds would also be standing by to EVAC the ODSTs on completion of the mission.

Gallagher and his men were suited up in the UNSC's experimental ODST armor. The black, vest-like outer layer was reinforced Kevlar with heat resistant coating. Each troop also had set of guards which hugged their legs from just above the knee to the boots. The second layer was a set of grey fatigues.

The most intriguing part of the ODST's unique armor system was the body glove. Worn underneath the combat fatigues was a flexible _nanofibre_ suit. It allowed full flexibility, but solidified when hit with a high velocity projectile. Microscopic nano-fibres would swell and contract around a bullet and _absorb_ the round, rather than repel it. The body glove could also regulate the soldiers body temperature, and adjust to different environments. The entire armor, minus the 50 pounds of gear strapped to him weighed in at a "comfortable" 115 pounds not including his own body weight.

A black combat helmet with a polarized visor protected the ODSTs head. Like the armors outer layer it was coated with an ultra smooth light resistant laminate, which increased its strength and impact resistance. On the inside of the visor a complete heads up display was projected showing the trooper a GPS layout of the drop-zone, a mission timer and a squad indicator icon for each of his twelve teammates. There was also a motion tracker display, as well as a NAV-point system, which once planet side, would show him each squad member's position.

Gallagher was one of the many volunteers who signed up for the very hush-hush operation with ONI section 3. He and his squad were the newest fighting force being prepared for the United Nations Space Command. Their existence was completely top-secret and not even the highest-ranking joint chiefs knew about the ODST project. _"Ok L.T. we're ready to commence countdown. Please confirm_."

Gallagher bit his lip and exhaled loudly. "Roger that drop command. Do me a favor this time. Try not to flash-fry any more of my troopers." He said in a snide sarcastic tone.

"_Uh, roger that. Inform your squad we're anticipating some rough weather over the big horn this morning so it may be a bumpy ride going down_." Said the drop controller.

Sergeant Gallagher was about to respond when another voice interrupted the frequency. _"Bumpy ride? Hey boss, maybe you'd like to strap your balls to a rocket propelled toaster and see if the ride is smooth!" _barked a British accented voice over the squad freq.

"For Christ's sake Hargrove stow that shit or you'll be a debris trail from here to Kansas!" Barked Gallagher, chastising the cocky section corporal. "Command we're ready for drop."

"_That's a ten-four. Drop commencing in t-minus thirty. Lay back, take a deep breath, and enjoy the ride." _Reported the drop controller in a sarcastic tone.

"Roger that dropping in thirty." Gallagher swallowed hard as his mission timer outlined a thirty-second countdown. "Alright ladies you heard the man. Hell bound in thirty. Lock those jaws and clench those asses!" He said as he banged his fist against the inside of his HEV's bulkhead. His squad indicators all winked green in acknowledgement as several responding _thumps_ echoed throughout the drop bay as the ODSTs prepared for planet-fall.

The last moments before a combat drop are something that can't be understood unless someone experiences one for themselves. One instant you're sitting in total darkness, save for the lights in your visor display. Instantly followed gut wrenching weightlessness which almost feels like forever. But just when you begin to panic from the helpless sensation you're falling so fast it feels like all your flesh trying to shrivel down the length of your body to your toes, as your body is literally fired out of a giant rifle. _A giant rifle aimed at a planet._

Gallagher's thoughts were interrupted by precisely what they described. In an instant he was fired like a bullet from the safety of the Yorktown, and was suspended floating in his harness.

Gallagher keyed in a tactical display of the drop-zone. The LCD came to life showing him an overview of the planet Reach as he descended in silence toward the upper atmosphere. The sun was just rising to his left and Gallagher regarded the sight thoughtfully. _It's amazing how there's always a beauty within mans brutality._

Suddenly the pod lurched violently as it hit the topmost layer of the planet. An intense screaming sound filled the capsule as the outside temperature began to climb to obscene levels. The display on his LCD changed to a topographical display highlighting his pod's elevation and position within Reach's stratosphere.

A secondary countdown appeared on his helmet's heads up display indicating there was one minute until the pod's chute would be deployed. _I hate this part._ He thought to himself as he ran a check of his inventory. His main weapon: a scoped MA5B assault rifle was a dream come true. It held a sixty round clip of armor piercing 10mm rounds capable of shredding a target like shooting a wet paper towel. His special issue MA5B had an extended barrel which allowed for neater bursts of fire. He glanced at the digital ammunition display built into the rifle and confirmed he had a full clip. He also double checked the safety to ensure it was on.

His standard issue sidearm was M6-D pistol. The magnum was a neat and powerful weapon which packed a decent caliber round with semi-explosive tips. The pistol, as well as the assault rifle had a remote feed to his HUD, which assisted his aiming accuracy. He also had a full set of fragmentation grenades, and mini charges strapped to his outer armor. Each troop was supposed to contain the firepower of three standard marines and the ODSTs did not take that ego booster lightly. On three consecutive occasions, his troopers had nearly blown the top on the project picking fights with marines in the junior ranks mess.

**_SLAM_** Gallagher's skull felt like a firecracker went off inside his helmet. The chute had deployed, interrupting his train of thought. A warning alarm sounded as the pod's velocity slowed dramatically. The LCD readout changed to show the platoons position around him. "Thompson, your pod is starting to fall out. Adjust your course by fifteen degrees port." Ordered Gallagher, studying the LCD. A green acknowledgement light winked beside Thompson's icon.

The trooper's pod had begun to correct its course trajectory when something _bad_ happened. The pod started to skitter and sway back and forth within the formation and actually _collided_ with an adjacent pod. They smashed together with such an intense impact that it caused their chutes to break away prematurely. _"Shit! Oh my god, chute failure! What the fu…" _Was the only transmission from Thompson's pod before the negative friction caused by the descent added to the entry speed turned both pods into flaming meteorites.

Gallagher could only watch in muted horror as two of his best troopers rocketed straight past his pod towards the planets surface like a pair of archer missiles. There was nothing he could do. By this time, both ODSTs would be reduced to a pile molten slag smeared throughout the inside of their pods. "Drop command this is Gallagher. Two troopers are down premature. Repeat, two down on entry." He said as he watched the pods explode over the morning sky, raining debris over a ten-kilometer stretch. _"Roger."_ muttered a mournful voice in Gallagher's ear.

He didn't even have time to mourn their passing. Instantly after the transmission ended he was slammed against his harness as his chute broke away, and the pods retro engines began to regulate his final descent. _It only took twenty seconds to vaporize those kids. God damn it!_ He thought as a chime announced his pod's groundside approach.

No time for sorrow. He was an ODST. The best of the best. He braced himself as his pod's retro rockets flared to slow his pod prior to touchdown. He snatched up his rifle from its rack and clicked the safety to off, and tensed up for the landing. He mentally went over his mission objectives. Rally the squad, pinpoint the target, remove all resistance, and wax the site. This wouldn't normally be an issue, but now he had a two-man gap in his squad. _Not good_. He would have to get creative, or hope that the contingent of marines waiting for them would be sloppy. _Doubtful._

He felt the _thump_ as his HEV hit the ground, and was nearly blinded as the hatch charges sent the armored door flying off its hinges and the bright morning light poured into the pod. He hit the ground running and took cover in a nearby cluster of trees, ducking under a hailstorm of stun-rounds from a .50 caliber turret somewhere below the rise where his pod landed.

A screaming filled the air followed by several thumps as the remainder of his squad hit the DZ. Their landing zones were spread over a half kilometer around his current position. It wouldn't be long before his team was rallied. But it wouldn't be long before that fifty tore them up either. "Hargrove: we have a surprise at the DZ. The enemy has a support unit gunning for us. Keep your heads down and make your way toward my marker. I'll provide a distraction." Said Gallagher as he aimed his MA5B toward the gunner's position and snapped off a responding burst of fire.

His distraction had worked for the most part. He could tell because the machine gun's rounds were more focused on his position. The stun replacement rounds were bouncing off the hull of his pod raining electrostatic sparks over his head.

Gallagher reached down to a trio of smoke canisters strapped to his right thigh. He carefully glanced over the ridge and counted a fire-team of at least six marines grouped up around the support gun. He yanked the pin from the canister and hefted it over the ridge as far as he could throw it. Within seconds a smoke screen erupted from the canister and clouded the entire ridge and surrounding area. "ODST six to squad, you're safe to approach my position smoke us up."

His squad's acknowledgement lights winked, and twelve yellow blotches showed up on his motion tracker as the squad neared his position. Gallagher crawled in the prone position to the crest of the hill and switched on his thermal imaging. Through the smoke he could easily make out six heat signatures. He brought up his rifle and thumbed the safety. He snapped off a series of responding fire and with satisfaction counted only two targets remaining.

Within moments his squad was formed up around Gallagher with their weapons facing their individual fields of fire.

"Let's get a snipe on that turret! Hargrove! Initiate offensive delta-six." Gallagher barked as he sprayed an additional burst of return fire through the smoke screen toward the turret. "The jarheads are wise to our DZ. We'll have to use our beta route."

twelve acknowledgment lights winked on his HUD and the squad instantly broke in half. Corporal Hargrove took his team of six south of the drop-zone, to wheel around the turret's position. They moved with remarkable speed through the brush each focusing on a pre-assigned direction to make sure no cocky marines were trying something foolish. "Standby six, we have a clear field of view to the turret. Awaiting green light over?" Hargrove whispered into his comm. Set.

Gallagher checked their position indicators to confirm that Hargrove's team was below the turret and completely unnoticed. "Do it." He said.

Two crisp shots from a sniper rifle rang out over the turret fire and the gun was instantly silenced. "Gunner down." Reported a recon trooper who was monitoring the situation with a range-finder. The gunner was rolling around on the ground, his body engulfed in blue bolts of electrostatic energy.

Within moments, the ODSTs were regrouped at the drop-zone collecting their gear. Support troops were geared up with their tripod guns, and anti-armor was locked and loaded. Gallagher patched a transmission to the Yorktown. "Command we are groundside and operational. Initial resistance neutralized." He reported.

'_Acknowledged, move to phase two. And keep your eyes peeled. Looks like the marines are going to try to throw a wrench in your plans."_ Answered the drop controller.

He was right. One turret was the only resistance waiting at their DZ? It Didn't make any sense at all. The jarheads had probably set up an ambush somewhere. But luckily for Gallagher he had a few more aces up his sleeve. "This is hammer-six to Echo eighty eight, requesting a thermal sweep of the staging area over?" He said into his radio.

"This is Pelican echo eighty eight to hammer six, reading you five by five. We're on station and ready to paint some targets over." Said a cool and relaxed voice.

"Roger that Screw-man good to hear ya." Gallagher said as a pair of bulky yet maneuverable Pelican drop-ships roared over his squads position. The Pelicans were a ground troops best friend. They were equipped for quick supply drops, recon flights, and even air support if things got hairy during a dust off. They had a dark forest green camouflage pattern, and short stocky fuselage. They banked west and went into a vertical climb as they began their thermal scan. "Hammer six looks like you've got a surprise party waiting for you on the other side of the Big Horn. Count at least forty bogies over."

"Roger that eighty eight. Requesting archer strike on bogie positions over?" Said Gallagher with a hint of malice in his voice.

"Roger that Six, Echo eighty eight fox-two!" Said the pilot, as the flight of Pelicans turned toward the target. Gallagher's HUD showed a salvo of simulated archer missiles streak from eighty eight's wingman and impact with the target area.

"That's a confirmed kill six. Enemy has been informed and acknowledge the hit. You're all clear to the target. Keep an eye out for any survivors." Without the need for instruction, the ODSTs were on their feet and formed up for movement. The Pelicans wheeled back toward the squad's position. "Screw-man is ready for vehicle deployment. Clear the drop-zone." Reported the pilot, as the Pelican flight made their way toward the DZ.

Ten minutes later The ODSTs were on the move. Six were tearing across the landscape on ATV's and six were loaded up in a pair of Warthogs. Gallagher took his fire-team in on foot toward the relay station with the Warthogs on both flanks. Shaun always insisted on walking point to prove to his men he wouldn't give an order he wouldn't carry out himself. That and it was bad form to look like a chicken shit in an ODST outfit.

He had decided it would be best to approach the target area through the dense foliage surrounding the Big Horn. This way his men could slip through the forest silently. Enabling them to sneak around any enemies, as well as take them down unsuspecting.

Gallagher slammed his break pedal, and pulled the convoy to a halt. Before them was a wide section of the Big Horn River. On the other side was a tree covered hill which looked like a perfect piece of real-estate.

"Alright, let's take that hill with a pair of scouts. The rest of you follow my lead. Keep your eyes peeled." He said over the radio.

A pair of ATV's carrying Hargrove and a recon troop sped off and splashed through the river. In a matter of moments they were at the top of the rise under plenty of cover.

Hargrove set up his sniper rifle and aimed toward the other side of the rise. In a small valley was a medium sized garrison, and just beyond that their target. A massive communications dishes which was coordinating Reach's orbital defenses. There were six sniper towers situated around the compound. Hargrove grinned. Damn noobs.

"Count six." Said the spotter. "Objective spotted. Fire….fire….fire…." BANG….BANG! rang out Hargrove's rifle. "Count five…they're on to us L-T."

Gallagher winked his acknowledgement and gunned his warthog. He blasted right through the river and straight toward the target area. He glanced to the passenger seat at the trooper carrying the spherical TAC Nuke. "get ready." He said

The remaining ATV's sped past Gallagher's Warthog, and took up positions on either side of the relay station. They dismounted and leveled a pair of jackhammers, aimed directly at the compound.

The second warthog slid to a halt beside Gallagher's and the driver and passenger jumped out and went prone. The support gunner on the back of the vehicle didn't hesitate before filling the area with suppressing fire. Gallagher's gunner quickly followed suit filling the garrison grounds with fire.

"Bogies are pinned L-T. Move it!" Said Hargrove as he downed a pair of counter-snipers who were positioned on the garrison roof.

"Open up those rocks!" Yelled Gallagher as he revved his Warthog. A pair of simulated SPNKR rounds screamed into the midst of the battle, confirming a devastating hit. Several marines charged out of the garrison blaring their assault rifles. The sad part was, they didn't even know what they were shooting at. They were firing blindly in all directions in a state of complete and utter panic. They didn't even notice the Warthog as it smashed through the wall of the relay station which was situated just east of the garrison.

The bomb carrier didn't even miss a beat. He ran to the base of the relay dish and began keying in the detonation sequence on the TAC nuke. "Bomb armed…." He announced as an electrostatic round impacted with his left shoulder. "DAMN IT!" Yelled the soldier as he went down.

Gallagher didn't have time to think. He dove on the TAC nuke and keyed the detonation cycle. A chime sounded over the comms frequency signaling the victory. "Hammer six to squad: Bomb planted." He said.

Two soldiers. This _training exercise_cost them two good men. When he should have been preparing to get wasted with his men in celebration of their first victory, he could only think of one thing. How the hell was he supposed to tell their families? What was he supposed to say? I apologize sir, but your son died in action doing his duty? There were some elements of command he would never come to grips with.

"That was some fine work Lieutenant." Said a voice. Gallagher turned to see a tall slender man dressed in officer whites.

"Colonel Ackerson…Sir!" He said as he snapped his best salute.

"Something's come up son. We've received a priority one our listening posts in the Sol system. Get yourself sorted out and report to ONI briefing as soon as possible."

"Sir?"

"Just report to briefing as soon as possible" Said Ackerson in a stern voice.


	3. Chapter 3

"Galactic Guinea Pig"

The pain was beyond anything he had ever felt. He tried to open his eyes but saw only darkness. _What is that noise?_ The strange sound resembled the noise of someone chewing on wood chips, a wet crunching sound. He felt something cold and metallic digging at the back of his neck. _Where am I?_

"_Gordon!"_

He tried to speak but only a dried croak came from his throat. _Screaming!_ He could hear screaming. Screams and more of that damn chewing sound. He struggled to move but he felt restraints. He heard someone talking: "Specimen one of sixteen is a fine sample indeed!" It sounded male. Like a man speaking through a communicator. _Who is that? Answer me god damn it!_

"_Gordon! Come on Gordon." _He heard the voice of a child. _Where am I?_ _Cold… It's so cold! How does she know my name?_

He could feel sunlight on his face, and he heard music. There was no way that this could even be real. He was on the Gagetown. _The object, Ciara_, the crew… _What the hell?_ _  
_

Lynch forced his eyes open. He was standing in his hometown in Iowa standing on the main street. He could hear carnival music, and laughter. The sweet tempting smell of fresh cotton candy filled his nostrils as he breathed. He looked to his left and saw a small girl waving to him. He had not seen in many years. "Oh my god… Alexis…" He said. He looked down at himself to see that he was wearing his full dress uniform. This wasn't right. He was so cold! _Man my head hurts_.

UNSC Lieutenant Gordon Lynch felt dizzy and rubbed his eyes. He stared at her in disbelief. Alexis Sampson was her name. She was his fifth grade crush_. I know what day this is. This is the day Alexis and I went to the summer parade. The day Alexis…._

The girl giggled and jumped up and down. Her sandy blonde hair glistening in the sun like spun gold. _"Gordie you're so silly!"_ She said. "Let's get some funnel cakes…and cotton candy…and hot dogs." She began to cross the road.

"NO!" He screamed, but it was too late. Just as the word wailed from him a truck sped around the corner and smashed into her with a horrifying force. She sailed sickly through the air and landed face first sliding across the pavement for a good twenty feet before coming to rest against the curb at his feet.

"Wait a god damned minute. This can't be real!" He said as he stared down at the motionless body. "This has to be some kind of dream!" He said struggling to suppress his tears. He stared at the motionless form of sweet little Alexis, innocent and beautiful little Alexis.

He watched in horror as her left arm rose into the air and turned unnaturally backward. Her little hand gripped her pony tail as she peeled her own face from the pavement. She stumbled to her feet, staring at him. Her face was torn to shreds and resembled something like a cross between a girls face, and ground meat. Her eyes were jet black and staring at him in utter contempt. Alexis grit her teeth and began to slowly walk toward him. Her eyes were lowered and, looked like a pair of jet black orbs set in a face of ragged flesh.

"Oh I can assure you. You're not sleeping Gordie." She said. "But think you'd rather be." She said through her bleeding mouth.

Lynch stared in disbelief as everything around him seemed to melt into nothing. The street, the people, everything just turned into liquid and melted away, leaving only an infinite expanse of darkness. Alexis was still standing before him, illuminated by some unseen light. She was staring at him with a hatred that could melt glaciers. 'You let me die Gordie. YOU COULD HAVE SAVED ME!"

She giggled her little laugh again and produced a strange object from behind her back. It was a long metal spike that looked like an over sized ice pick. "This might hurt. Please be calm specimen one of sixteen." She said. But it wasn't her voice. This was a male, electronic sounding voice.

Alexis giggled again and dove on him, pinning him down. "What is this?" Exclaimed Lynch. Alexis shook her head. "This, is for the better good, one of sixteen." She said, as she pried his jaws open forcibly. "This is the pinnacle of our research!" She said before suddenly, ramming the spiked object into his mouth with an inhuman strength. "Your sacrifice will prevent the loss of many! With your help we can end this epidemic!"

Lynch screamed. A burning javelin of pain shot from the roof of his mouth to the top of his skull. He screamed until his throat dried like beef jerky. Then he screamed again. "Ring around the rosie! Pocket full of posies!" She sang as she twisted the spike from left to right. The pain was absolutely unbearable. Like having a litre of liquid nitrogen injected into his head. He screamed again. This time his screams trailed off into a low, muffled moan as he felt a strange numbing sensation throughout his body. He could hear voices, and screams in the distance, but he could see nothing at all. He could only feel his brain freezing, and a giant needle picking away at the inside of his skull. He choked on something…it tasted like blood.

"One of sixteen is showing signs of accelerated mental trauma. Asphyxiation eminent! Prepare to administer bronchial a bypass."

Suddenly Lynch could no longer feel the pain and was standing on the bridge of the Gagetown. He looked around. The control panels were all working, and there wasn't a single sign of damage anywhere in sight. He rubbed his eyes and took a few steps toward the center of the deck. His head hurt. _Where am I now?_ He thought to himself as he sat at the telemetry station and stared at the monitor.

"Four of sixteen is showing possible signs of the pathogen. Induce with 90 cc's of serotonicilin." He could still hear that weird voice. Lynch tensed as he heard a blood chilling scream off in the distance which seemed to echo throughout the entire station.

He studied the display monitor in front of him and saw no problems. Am I on the Gagetown…what was that object we fought? Did it really happen?" "Warning one of sixteen is going into relapse shock." Lynch's eyes were suddenly filled with a white light which burned worse than a bucket of mace. He screamed again and opened his eyes. He couldn't move. He felt paralyzed. As his eyes adjusted to the light he gasped. _Oh my god…_

He was in a brightly lit room. He glanced down toward his legs to see that they were strapped to some sort of metal gurney. He tried to move his head but couldn't. To his left was a mirror, which revealed to him why he couldn't move. He was strapped to a gurney, doubled over a cylinder shaped machine.

Protruding from a bent arm like object was a long spike which had been driven through the roof of his mouth. The tip of the spike was protruding from his head, which was missing its top half. Tiny bolts of electricity were emanating from the tip of the spike sending waves of strange energy across the top of his exposed brain.

Another set of spikes had been jammed into the bass of his neck where his nerve stem connected to his spine. As he took his eyes from the ghastly reflection he saw the other crew members. They were all hooked up to similar butcher like machines. They were all screaming. Lynch joined them, in a tortured choir of screams. They stared at one another, all awakened from their numb rapture. With mortified expressions of panic they screamed so loud it was surprising their cries weren't heard all the way to Reach.

Then…everything went dark.


End file.
